Mifune
by gold jack roger
Summary: no summery sorry read and review plz
1. Chapter 1

_**The Way of War**_

_**by**_

_**Jack North**_

A young man with a long, dark pony tail that wrapped around his body was walking down the road. His long legs were aching from three days of travel with little rest. He was dreading the fact that he still had another eight days of travel ahead. The destination of his journey was a small town by the name of Hanamara. As he approached the crest of a hill, he spotted two armies engaged in battle. He recognized one army as that of the Tokugawa clan, but he was unfamiliar with the standards and colors of the second army. The young man had a long history of hatred against the Tokugawa, but kept his distance to observe which side was winning the battle.

As the young man was observing the melee, he sensed the presence of a group of men approaching from his flank. It was a Tokugawa ambush party that was sent out to flank the opposing army. They had not noticed the young man yet, but they were moving straight toward him. The young man drew his staff and charged at the ambush party. He was upon them before they could draw their weapons. The action was short and swift, but by the time it was over, the entire ambush party lay unconscious on the ground. The young man said "Had this been a sword, or any blade for that matter, they would all be dead and the peaceful teachings of my master would have been wasted." The young man could not bear the thought of ever tarnishing the memory of his beloved master.

With the ambush party dispatched, the young man went back to his observation point to watch the rest of the battle. Both armies suffered heavy losses and fought to a draw. The young man waited for the armies to leave the field of battle before moving from his spot. As he moved slowly through carnage, he reflected on the number of bodies that would not receive a proper burial, and the number of weapons that were left without a master. He thought sorrowfully "It is a shame that a life must be lost with no opportunity to return to its family. Truly this can not be what the heavens desire. The way of war is the path to darkness."

His thought was hardly complete when an arrow came whistling through the air and struck the ground near his foot. A voice called out "Who are you, and what are you doing here ronin? The young man slowly turned to the sound of the voice and said boldly "A ronin is a warrior who travels with no destination. I am on my way to Hanamara!" The man stepped out from behind a tree with his crossbow leveled at the young man. He said "That still does not answer the question of who you are." The young man recognized the soldier as a member of the army that opposed the Tokugawa. He felt relieved, but thought it wiser to hide his emotions. He stared icily at the soldier and said nothing. The soldier grew impatient, and said "Fine, you will accompany me to our base camp and we will see how long you choose to remain silent."

As they entered the camp, an officer approached and said "Well, who do we have here?" The soldier was about to respond, but the young man took on an air of superiority and countered, "Whom does this army fight for?" The officer was taken aback, but replied, "This is the army of Yoshimoto Imagawa, lord of the Imagawa clan." The young man smiled and bowed to the officer. He said "My name is Mifune, and I would like to request an audience with your master." The officer said, "The master is a very busy man. If you have not noticed, we are in the midst of a war." Mifune said, "Yes, I know. The Tokugawa clan is also my sworn enemy." The officer warmed at this confession and stated, "I will see if the master can spare a few moments." He turned to the soldier and said "Bring him to the master's tent." The soldier responded "At once Lieutenant Shota!"

The three men were walking through the encampment when Mifune spotted a tent that was much larger than the rest. He assumed, correctly, that it was the tent of Lord Yoshimoto. As they reached their destination, Shota turned to Mifune and said "Wait here." He entered the tent, and Mifune heard some muffled voices, but could not understand what was being said. A few moments later, Shota emerged from the tent followed by a man whose face was covered in war paint. The man asked "Who wishes to have an audience with me? Mifune replied "I do, my name is Mifune. I was traveling to Hanamara when I stumbled upon your battle today. I planned to stay out of the way, but I was attacked by an ambush party of the Tokugawa." Yoshimoto said "You seem to be unscathed." Mifune replied, "They were not much of a match." Yoshimoto wondered if this young man was really that good, or was he full of false bravado? The soldier then confirmed the fact that they found the ambush party unconscious and had taken them prisoner. Yoshimoto smiled and clapped Mifune on the back, saying "It seems you may have spared us an embarrassing defeat today! How can I repay you?" Mifune said "Allow me to help you defeat the Tokugawa before I continue on my journey to Hanamara." Yoshimoto was greatly impressed with the young warrior and invited him inside the massive tent.

The tent was organized to a point Mifune never thought possible. Yoshimoto sat on his bed and said "I appreciate the help you've given us. I suspect you want to know why we are fighting the Tokugawa?" Mifune nodded and Yoshimoto continued "we are fighting the Tokugawa so Mitsuhide Akechi can gather an army to stand up to the Oda clan as well as Tokugawa clan, so the people can find peace at last and not have to live under tyranny of the two clans." Mifune was shocked that such a thing was happing and he hadn't known sooner.

That night, Mifune was shown to his own tent. He was soon dwelling on the past when he was with his master and the up coming battle. After he had slept for three hours he awoke with a strange sensation, when he closed his eyes he felt like he was suffocating in an inescapable darkness. He opened his eyes, gasping for air. After a minute or two of organizing his thoughts, he stood and ran to Yoshimoto's tent. Mifune entered the tent expecting Yoshimoto to be asleep only to see him reading a letter. Yoshimoto soon noticed Mifune and said "what is it Mifune?" Mifune replied, "I sense another army heading this way" "it's the Oda, Mifune." Mifune's jaw dropped at this news. Yoshimoto continued "and I will die tomorrow by Honzo Hattori's hand." Mifune was about to speak but was silenced by Yoshimoto who then said "we both know it, but the difference is I accept it while you suppress. We have no hope for winning this battle against the Tokugawa and Oda." Mifune replied, "we still have hope so long as you drew breath. You won't die tomorrow not while I'm around." Yoshimoto then said "I'm transferring my power to you when I die tomorrow."

When Mifune returned to his tent he saw a women sitting on his bed with dark brown hair tied back into a ponytail with a black velvet band and big dark eyes that made Mifune feel strangely calmed yet sad. After a long silence she said "so I guess you've heard the news." Mifune nodded and said, "Who are you?" "Chi leader of main camp defenses of Yoshimoto's army." Replied Chi. Mifune sat next to her and sighed. Chi then stood, turned to Mifune, kissed him on the forehead and said, "May the heavens give you a helping hand."

Morning came and Mifune arose, mindful of what happened last night. As he stepped out of his tent he saw four men one of them handed him breakfast. Mifune thanked them and ate quickly. When he finished eating the men introduced them selves as Tencho, Kyo, Shonoska and Sabuji. Tencho then said "lord Yoshimoto sent us to be your bodyguards" Mifune decided not to tell them what happened last night and said "thanks, I appreciate it. I must thank him after this battle." He then drew his staff and said "let's get ready for battle."


	2. maybe we are fools

"**Maybe we are fools"**

Mifune and his bodyguards took up position at a bridge that led to the main camp of the Imagawa. They were observing the Oda and Tokugawa forces forming into battle lines off in the distance. Yoshimoto, who was mounted on a gray horse, rode up to Mifune's position and said, "I see they have decided to strike first. They must be reminded of our superiority. Mifune, show these lowly brutes their place." Mifune nodded, knowing that a successful defense would be his responsibility alone. He reflected on the fact that Yoshimoto had related only to himself and the officers the vision of his impending death. He wondered why Yoshimoto would not name his son Ujizane the new leader, but he must have his reasons.

Mifune sensed the presence of Nobonaga Oda in the distance. Oda was addressing his army saying, "It appears that I am still in heaven's favor. Do not stop until we have taken Yoshimoto's head." The rain began to fall heavily, and visibility decreased. Mifune whispered to Yoshimoto "Sir, you are in danger, get to some place safe." Yoshimoto agreed, and rode off to the center of the main camp. Mifune then turned to support the centerlines that were coming under attack from the army led by Tadakatsu Honda.

Tadakatsu was unbelievably strong. He was generally regarded to be one of the most powerful warriors in the land. Mifune respected this, but Tadakatsu was part of the Tokugawa clan, and thus shared responsibility for his master's death. Mifune's anger could not be contained as he charged at the Oda-Tokugawa center. Mifune's staff struck true with several Oda-Tokugawa men, laying them out in single blows. Mifune then saw Tadakatsu and charged at him.

Mifune's staff and Tadakatsu's spear connected with each other in a mighty crash. They fought, wielding mighty blows at each other; however, none found their marks, as every blow was blocked each time by the other. Mifune knew that Tadakatsu wouldn't go down easily, and he began to formulate a plan. Mifune was so focused on defeating Tadakatsu, he was barely conscious of the cold rain that was falling, or the noise of the battle around him. He had not sensed that Honzo, the ninja of Iga was nearing Yoshimoto's position. Mifune took five steps back, staff at side, and charged full speed at Tadakatsu. Mifune was so fast that it appeared he went right though Tadakatsu. The attack splintered Mifune's staff. He dropped the pieces to the ground, and turned to face Tadakatsu, who was doubled over, leaning on his spear. Mifune's bodyguards stepped in beside him to offer their support. Tenchu, the musketeer, aimed his weapon at Tadakatsu's head, but Mifune waved him off saying "It is not his time, that will come soon enough." Tadakatsu realized that he was in an untenable position, and called loudly for his army to retreat. As he turned away, he growled at Mifune "Your mercy is admirable, if not foolish. It shall prove to be your undoing."

Mifune turned away from the retreating Tadakatsu when he suddenly sensed the danger that Yoshimoto was in. Mifune ran to aid Yoshimoto only to see him go down by Honzo's hand who then disappeared. Mifune ran to help Yoshimoto but soon realized that nothing could be done to save him. Yoshimoto gasped "Mifune, I pass on the fate of the people to you. Please stop the Oda and Tokugawa at all cost." Yoshimoto then went limp. Mifune soon ordered the retreat of the Imagawa army. Most got away, but the rest died in the rear guard defending the retreat, which included Ujizane who said to Mifune before leaving to help defend the retreat "My father saw something in you, Mifune, that makes you a true leader. You are in charge of my clan until I return, do not disappoint me."

Mifune rushed the remainder Imagawa army to Hanamara hoping that the Oda and Tokugawa wouldn't give pursuit. But they did give pursuit. Mifune had set up defense a day away from Hanamara ready for the Oda and Tokugawa when they arrived.

Oda and Tokugawa arrived a day after Mifune had finished setting up defense. They immediately attacked, confident that they would beat the Imagawa army now they where without Yoshimoto. But what the Oda or Tokugawa didn't know was that Mifune knew the town and area around like the back of his hand for he had visited it before a long time ago and wanted to see an old friend that was there. He knew of a small road that leads directly to the main camp of the Oda and Tokugawa, he decided that he and his bodyguards would use it to attack it and had the Imagawa army lure them out of their main camp. The plan worked as the Imagawa destroyed the Oda-Tokugawa army piece-by-piece, forcing them to leave their main camp almost defenseless. Mifune and his bodyguards ran up the road, they stopped three yards short of the gate, hiding off the road looking the gate. Tenchu looked the gate for a while before tuning to Mifune and whispered, "What are we waiting for?" before Mifune could answer, the gate opened and a woman came out dragging Ujizane. Mifune then jumped up and shouted "Kyojiro! The women turned to Mifune and said "Oh, Mifune. It's been a long time. How is your master?" Mifune's eyes flared with anger at Kyojiro's ignorance, and said, "you shall pay for what you did to him." Mifune charged at her, she dropped Ujizane and drew her sword.


End file.
